Thursday, December 29, 2016

Mikaela Shiffrin won her third race in a row in Semmering. The last woman to win three races in a three day span was Swiss great Vreni Schneider in 1989.

Shiffrin continued her unbeaten streak in slalom with another demonstrative victory today. The Olympic champion dominated both slalom runs to finish ahead of Tour veteran Veronika Velez Zuzulova (+ 0.64) and Wendy Holdener (+ 1.54).
"I felt like I was fighting, so I’m proud of that", Shiffrin explained in the finish. "I didn’t even know that was a record, I was just trying to ski fast and have some fun. I’m still searching to have a perfect run and a really fast run, but sometimes it’s better to fight so I did that today and I’m happy. I was trying to think about how Marcel Hirscher or maybe Henrik (Kristoffersen) would ski it. I don’t think I came close to that, but I was trying to channel that energy".
Velez Zuzulova was understandably disappointed to lose out on a victory so close to the finish, but has faith that her skiing is there and is just waiting for the right time to shine and challenge Shiffrin’s slalom dominance.

"It’s hard", she admitted. "For sure it’s hard because I try every race but I feel better and better and I hope it will go on the right way and it will come at the right time".
Echoing The Slovakian, Holdener also feels like she has the speed to beat Shiffrin. The Swiss is planning on a couple of solid training days in Austria before her next chance at a win in Zagreb next week.

"The first run was tougher than the second because it was turnier", Holdener said. "Yesterday I had the same problems. I had to fight a lot so I was used to it today. At the moment, I need some training days, but when I ski like I can, I can win".

The first Alpine Combined of the season took place today on the Deborah Compagnoni course in Santa Caterina.
Alexis Pinturault finished in an overall 2:19.71. The winner of the Alpine Combined globe 2016 was in third place after the first run and became faster and faster in the SL run, to final cross the finish line as the winner. It’s his 6th win and 9th podium in the discipline.
Marcel Hirscher finished second, 0.20 seconds off the pace, while Aleksander Aamodt Kilderounded out the podium, 1.13 out.
The Frenchman is a powerhouse in alpine combined, having won two of the three events last season and taking home the 2016 discipline globe. Yet this race, he thinks, was his best alpine combined ever, feeling confident in both super-G and slalom.

"Winning is always something special", he said. "This super combined was really interesting. The super-G I get in a good place like Marcel and then it was a really good fight for slalom".
Alexis Pinturault fought hard to overcome his deficit from first run. Behind the winner was Austrian Marcel Hirscher, who has never won an alpine combined before. This result marked his 99th World Cup podium, and increased his lead in the overall standings by 80 points. The Austrian now has 713 points, 231 more than Kjetil Jansrud of Norway, who is second in the rankings.
Norwegian Aleksander Aamodt Kilde, who was leading after the super-G run by 0.76 seconds, ended the day in third place. The result is his first World Cup podium finish in alpine combined, which is in part thanks to the slalom set by his coach, Fabien Mazuir.

"I knew a little about the course and how it was going to be, so that was for sure an advantage for me", he shared.

Wednesday, December 28, 2016

Mikaela Shiffrin takes her second victory in Semmering today under challenging conditions. France’s Tessa Worley finished in second place for the second day in a row, and Germany’s Viktoria Rebensburg made her return to the GS podium in third place. Shiffrin managed to ski with conviction through the heavy snowfall and hung on to her first run advantage, crossing the finish with a slim 0.15 second margin of victory.

"It was a big fight", Shiffrin explained in the finish. "There’s so much snow coming down. I could feel my skis in the track speeding up and kind of coming out and slowing down, so I was like, ‘Oh, this isn’t good, it’s gotta be slow.’ So I kept fighting and fighting. It was cool. It’s two victories, but in the same place. It’d be nice to repeat it at a new venue, but it’s definitely nice to feel like I can ski free for four runs in a row".
Tessa Worley now leads the Giant Slalom standings by 35 points over Shiffrin and had to fight harder than she might have felt comfortable doing in the bad visibility, but was satisfied nonetheless with another podium appearance.
"It was really, really tough", Worley explained. "I wasn’t controlling anything, I was just trying to go down and stay on my feet and I was pretty surprised that I lit the green light at the end. Happy with the second podium but really disappointed with the conditions today. It was really tough. I couldn’t push as hard as I would have done if the visibility would have been better, but you still have to push even though you don’t control anything".
For Viktoria Rebensburg, Today marks her first podium appearance since winning the final GS of last season in St. Moritz, Switzerland. Rebensburg suffered an undisplaced tibial fracture in early October and has been working to return to form ever since.

"It was for sure really important", she said of her result. "I was fighting hard after my injury to find my way back, and we kept working pretty hard and now I think it’s kind of the result, but it’s not actually where I want to be because I want to be on top again, but for sure it’s a good start".

Tuesday, December 27, 2016

The replacement race from the cancelled GS in Courchevel was held in Semmering Today to the delight of the Austrian crowd in attendance. An exciting opening run had athletes continuing to come down with the lead, one besting the next even outside the top seed.
Mikaela Shiffrin didn’t think bib 15 would be a great start number in the morning, but it didn’t matter for her as she skied to a 0.27-second lead after the first run. Manuela Moelgg led the ever-solid Italian team in second, and her teammate Marta Bassino was third at 0.49 seconds off the lead. Even Taina Barioz got into the mix, sitting fifth from bib 20.

For Shiffrin, it marked her second career victory in GS but the first time alone with the win. She previously tied Anna Veith in the Sölden opener in 2014.

"It was so much fun, and I felt relaxed and really clean. It was nice to ski that", Shiffrin said between runs. "I came into this race thinking gosh, I have to be excited to race – not dread it and have to come up with a plan. Just go and see what happens, and it felt good".
The firm surface which froze solid overnight held up through the second run as light snowfall fell from the sky. Lara Gut, who sat an uncharacteristic 17th after encountering trouble on the first run, charged hard in the second to hold the leader box through 11 challengers. Tessa Worley also had her turn in the hot seat, but she was finally pushed to second place with a blazing second run by Shiffrin.
"It was a tough race: icy, bumpy, everything I like. Mikaela did a great two runs. I did a bad top section on the first, so I'm really happy with second place and with my second run attacking from top to bottom", said Worley. "I love it. I love having two chances like this, and I'm going to make the best of it", she added, looking ahead to Wednesday's race.

Manuela Moelgg rounded out the podium in third for her first appearance in the top 3 since 2011.
"I took a lot of time to come back, but I'm here. I'm not the youngest – but not a bad one", said Moelgg, who skied with Shiffrin in Italy over the short Christmas break. "Yeah, she was with me at home and we had a nice time and good training".

The cancelled Super-G of Lake Louise has been rescheduled in Santa Caterina, ahead of the traditional Downhill on 28th and the Alpine Combined on 29th.

Norway’s Kjetil Jansrud was unbeatable on the Deborah Compagnoni course today. Hannes Reichelt and Dominik Paris rounded out the podium.
The dominance of the Norwegians in the speed discipline is impressive again this year. Especially Kjetil Jansrud is on fire and claims three back-to-back wins in the three first Super-Gs of the season. Despite some minor health problems in the past days, Jansrud keeps up his winning streak and becomes the second man to win the three first Super-Gs of a World Cup season.

"I’m feeling awesome", he said. "There’s not much to say. You never expect the wins. In some ways, I’m skiing very confidently this whole season, but also these last races…I’m just enjoying the flow for the moment and hopefully, it’ll continue".

Austria didn’t have the best start in the speed season, but it seems that last week’s victory relieved the whole team, including Hannes Reichelt, who earns a good second place in today’s Super-G. The World Champion comes a long way, as he suffered different injuries since his last podium in January.

"Last year, 2016, was not so easy for me", he explained. "After my podium in Kitzbuehel, I had the crash. Then in summertime, I had surgery, so coming back was not easy".
Starting with bib number 5, South Tyrolean Dominik Paris was the first to lay down a strong run and set a reference time of 1:31.53. After his third place in the Super-G in Val d’Isère, Paris was a serious contender and the pressure from the Italian crowd was palpable. In the end, it’s a third place, second podium of the season for Dominik Paris.

"It’s feeling very good", the Italian said. "It’s so good to stand on the podium at home…a lot of emotions".

Monday, December 26, 2016

Singer George Michael has died at his home at the age of 53.
The star, who launched his career with Wham! in the 1980s and had huge success as a solo performer, "passed away peacefully" on Christmas Day in Goring, Oxfordshire, his publicist said.
More than 30 years ago Wham! filmed the video for their much-loved hit "Last Christmas" in Saas-Fee. The hit by pop duo Wham! is one of the most popular Christmas pop records of all time. The video, released in December 1984, was filmed in Saas-Fee and broke all viewing figures. Many locals still talk excitedly today about the visit of George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley, who appear in the video celebrating Christmas in one of the Saas-Fee chalets.
"Last Christmas" was written and produced by George Michael, and has been covered by many artists since its original release. The video shows George and partner Andrew Ridgeley accompanying girlfriends to see friends in Saas-Fee, Switzerland with the old Felskinn cableway playing a starring role in it.

Thursday, December 22, 2016

Madonna di Campiglio is the oldest Italian World Cup venue, as they hold a Slalom in 1966/67, the year of the foundation of the World Cup. 50 years later, the event is still running and attracting thousands of people for the traditional night race on 22nd of December.
On this occasion, the Norwegian slalom prince won his second slalom in a row, both this season with a first win two weeks ago in Val d’Isère. Kristoffersen was the fastest on both runs and charged the finish pitch to bring home his 11th slalom win.
This was his second consecutive win at this venue, putting him amongst legends Ingemar Stenmark and Alberto Tomba, who both won consecutive Madonna di Campiglio slaloms.

"I think it’s always going to be special to win a World Cup race" he said of the victory. "I don’t think I’m ever going to be satisfied. There’s so many legends that come before me and won so much more and there’s so much more you can win. Stenmark has 86 wins, so there’s a bit of road to go there".Marcel Hirscher is keeping up with Kristoffersen, finishing +0.33 off the pace. The two are playing in their own league in slalom, and with his constant and very solid performances, Hirscher was able to defend his red leader bib in the discipline and goes into the Christmas break with the pole position in the Overall, the GS and the SL standings.
"It’s a very technical course here at Madonna di Campiglio, and I have here a lot of mixed emotions", Hirscher reflected. "I celebrated here one of my biggest victories of my career. Last year, I had maybe the luckiest moment of my life, where I needed so much luck not to get hit by a drone, and today it was very good skiing of mine and I’m super, super happy with second place".In third place, Italian Stefano Gross grabbed his 10th World Cup podium. To realise this performance in front of his home crowd meant a lot to him, especially as he wasn’t in his best shape coming into the race.

Sean and Callum continue their Euro trip and head from Switzerland to the Italian countryside. En route, the Groovemeister travels in to surprise his boys. The Pettit clan enjoys a few days of fresh powder and Italian cuisine in the Aosta Valley.

Tuesday, December 20, 2016

Sean and Callum Pettit leave behind winter in Canada and venture to Switzerland for some fresh snow. Teaming up with snowboarders Chris Rasman and Jody Wachniak, the guys explore all that Lötschental and Engelberg have to offer.

Monday, December 19, 2016

It was the second year that FIS has staged the nighttime Parallel Giant Slalom and it is quickly becoming a fan favorite with its knockout format and head-to-head format. This new discipline has been introduced last year in the Audi FIS Ski World Cup and the show was great: a very compact, TV-friendly product with lots of action and fun for the spectators!
Cyprien Sarrazin (FRA) earned today his first-ever World Cup victory. It was just his seventh start in a World Cup event and 22 year-old's previous best World Cup finish was 24th place, but tonight he was in the zone as dispatched some of the biggest names in his quest for victory, topping racers like Justin Murisier (SUI), Leif Kristian Haugen (NOR) and Carlo Janka (SUI) en route to the win.
"I have never really dreamed about wining a World Cup", said Sarrazin. "My main goal is to ski as fast as possible and enjoy it. I was just trying my best and going for it. I was so concentrated that I wasn't even looking at who was next to me".
Janka settled for second place after closing 0.10 seconds behind the Frenchman in the big final.
"I didn't expect that I would be in the finals". said Janka. "I made some steps forward with my start and that was really important today for this competition and also in the gates I had a pretty good feeling and it was fun to do this competition. It's good that I'm on the podium today and I hope I can go on in the next few races with a little bit more confidence".
The small final, with third place on the line, was an affair of bragging rights as Norwegian countrymen Kjetil Jansrud and Leif Kristian Haugen dueled it out for the final podium place. In the end, last year’s PGS champion in Alta Badia, Jansrud, topped Haugen by 0.23 seconds, to earn his second podium in as many races at the nighttime race.
"I think parallel is a fun discipline", said Janrud. "I've skied both parallel slalom and parallel GS and for sure parallel slalom is way different than normal slalom. Parallel GS is kind of similar to GS and I think it looks like there's a little bit more action to it.".

Sunday, December 18, 2016

It was a clear victory in the men’s Audi FIS Alpine World Cup Giant Slalom race in Alta Badia (ITA). Marcel Hirscher won the World Cup men's Giant Slalom +0.71 ahead of Mathieu Faivre and +1.10 of Florian Eisath.
Hirscher laid down two great runs to claim his first Giant Slalom victory of the season. It was Hirscher’s 41st career World Cup win, which now moves him up to fourth on the all-time victory list, surpassing Switzerland’s Pirmin Zurbriggen’s mark of 40 for fourth of all time, and matches Alberto Tomba with 4th GS win in Alta Badia.
"You always have to ski smart and you need a little bit of a routine", Hirscher said of his win. "It’s physically one of the toughest races of the year. First victory this season in a GS race, I’m super happy with this. It is inspiring, but I am not thinking about these kinds of records. I don’t know how long I want to ski, but if I’m done with skiing, I will look underneath my name and be happy".
After Faivre’s strong showing in the first run, he did not want to lose focus and did everything he could to concentrate on his performance and his performance only, trying to block out any distractions until the moment he pushed out of the start.

"It was of course a big fight and I’m pretty satisfied, of course", Faivre said. "I think I am pretty proud of my first run, I was able to really fully charge. In the second run, as usual, I tried to remain focused and concentrate. I was listening to my music until the last moment. Second run, Hirscher really put on the high level".
Sunday’s race was the 32-year-old Eisath’s 100th World Cup start and his first podium. It was an emotional day as the Italian grew up mere kilometers from Alta Badia and had family and friends on hand to witness his accomplishment.

"It’s an incredible day for me", he explained. "Twelve years ago in 2004, I had my first World Cup race here and from there, it was a really long journey to come to this podium. There was a lot of ups and downs and a lot of fighting. Today is my one hundredth World Cup race, and I am finally on the podium. I did two really good runs. For me, on the performance side, that was really important".

Lara Gut won the second Super-G race of the season in Val d'Isère. Tina Weirather came in second +0.13 behind and Elena Curtoni took third +1.21 seconds out.
Lara Gut claim today her than her tenth career super-G victory.
All three athletes who hit the Super-G podium at Val d'Isere today had something to prove before leaving the French resort. After two DNFs in a row, Lara Gut of Switzerland had the most to leave on the slope and did so with an impressive – although imperfect – run to seal the retribution victory ahead of Liechtenstein's Tina Weirather. Italian Elena Curtoni matched her career-best result with third place.
"I felt good on the slope and the difference in the end was just that I realized in the last days how many amazing people I have around me. They give me so much energy, and it just made me believe that in the end it doesn’t have to be perfect. I just have to take what I have and try to give my best", said Gut. "So today I just went to the start and knew that a few things could get better. When you go out twice, it’s not the best condition to try to win a race. But I was like, that’s me, I’m just going to give the slope everything I have, and we will see".
Tina Weirather was equally seeking retribution on the O.K. slope.
"You could totally tell from just seeing the times today who was really frustrated – Lara and [I] definitely had something open with this slope and really wanted to do well and had some anger in us, and we were able to put it in the snow", said Weirather. "Today it was a tricky course because there were really straight gates and then one really cranking turn once in a while so you had to know where they were and then really go straight for the straight ones and round for the round ones. You didn’t really feel that you had a rhythm at all because it was changing so fast, and that was the secret to success".
After posting a bow and arrow analogy on her social media accounts, Curtoni explained that sometimes people have to face setbacks to move forward.

"That’s my season so far, and that’s my life so far. I think from a down moment you always come up, and it’s just to trust it and to put your heart in it", said Curtoni. "It is really hard. I was crying like a baby yesterday, so I can’t believe I was able to put my heart and my soul into the slope today. But I think it’s the right way to get back on the track".

Saturday, December 17, 2016

It was a wild ride in today’s Audi FIS Ski World Cup men’s Downhill as the Saslong course in Val Gardena/Groeden (ITA) provided plenty of drama in one of the most competitive races of this season.
It was a day full of twists and turns as there were a number of racers that could have taken home bragging rights with less than a second separating the first 15 finishers. Svindal looked like he had the victory wrapped up with the most dangerous opponents down in the finish area when Franz laid down a blistering run. It was tight the entire way down as all waited on the edge of their seat to see if the Austrian would pull off the upset.
But all of the top three were all smiles as Svindal found himself back on the podium in another strong comeback bid, while Nyman continued to show his strength on one of his best courses in Val Gardena.In the end, it was a fairy tale finish for Austrian Max Franz, who earned his first career World Cup victory, after coming down with bib 26 and barely edging Norway’s Aksel Lund Svindal by 0.04 seconds.

"First victory is really awesome in Groeden. I felt really well in the first and second training and today, the feeling was pretty good. The chance to win was there and I took it. Really happy", said Max Franz.

"It's a little bit different this year to be at the start because I haven't skied so much so it's not an automatic. Normally, you know what you're supposed to do, the technique is easy to ski completely correct, but that's a little different this year. I'm an old guy now. I'm experienced so I can come in with just a little bit of training and get away with coming into the season and still be fast", said Aksel Lund Svindal

Third place went to American Steven Nyman, who trailed by 0.41 seconds.

"I went off the Kamelbuckel a little back which made me roll down the windows and gave me a good scare. I skied really well. I was in the lead on the last split but I burned my skis really bad so I could feel them on this last drag down bottom and they were just grabbing and I was like, 'I'm not moving like I should be moving right now,' which is a bummer. I'm really happy with the performance. To know I can ski at the top is really, really good and I want to cary that into Caterina".

Third Downhill, third victory for Ilka Stuhec. After claim her third World Cup victory yesterday in the Alpine Combined Ilka Stuhec's domination in Downhill continues. The Slovenian wins the Val d'Isère Downhill with a winning time of 1:31.93 seconds.
Following Stuhec in second place (+0.28 sec) was Cornelia Hütter. It is the first podium for the Austrian Ladies Team this season.
Sofia Goggia (+0.32 sec) from Italy finished in third place. She has now finished on the podium six times in four separate disciplines this season.
The slope was a bumpy challenge for the racers. "Everyday, everyone is sliding through it", the Slovenian said. "It’s been the fourth day today that we’ve skied the course, and it’s always getting a bit wilder, I guess. I just tried to ski it the way I imagined it. It didn’t work out that way, but apparently, fast enough".
Cornelia Huetter now has ten World Cup podium finishes to her name, and this marked her first of the 2016-17 season. "It’s amazing", she shared. "The last weeks were not very good for me, and it’s hard to rehab again and find the speed from the last year. Today was not easy in my head, but at the end, it’s good".

The Austrian also commented that course was bumpier and felt a bit faster on Saturday. That combined with the fact that most of the course is in shadows meant athletes had to "stand forward to the ski and feel really self-confident".

Sofia Goggia repeated her performance from the alpine combined. The always humorous Italian jokingly requested that reporters not ask her how it feels to be on the podium so many times in a row because she would simply say, "It feels great". Instead of talking about her own strong performance, she mentioned the success of her team as there were four Italians in the top 10.
"I’m happy for them because I know they work hard", she shared. "They have also some physical problems, but we are downhill lions. It’s our hashtag, so today we can stay connected to this hashtag"
Goggia also has a friendly relationship with the day’s winner, and noted how hard Stuhec has worked to earn these downhill wins.

"Ilka is a really nice person, a nice girl who suffered also a lot of injuries on the knees, so we start from the same ground because we know what suffering means with all the trouble, physical, mental", the Italian explained. "…If she worked as hard as I did, she really deserved this".

Friday, December 16, 2016

Ilka Stuhec from Slovenia claim her third World Cup victory after winning both Downhills in Lake Louise this season. Michelle Gisin from Switzerland crossed the finished line 0.12 seconds behind to claimc her first ever World Cup podium. Joining them in third place was Sofia Goggia 0.16 seconds back of the winner.

Slovenian Ilka Stuhec was noticeably emotional during the awards ceremony in the finish area.
"It feels great like every win. Well, all three of them. I felt confident in the start of the slalom, but still I know I could push a bit more, but maybe one part of me just wanted to get to the finish as well. But apparently, fast enough", said Stuhec, whose mother works as her ski technician. "It’s really awesome that I have [my mom] around all the time. I’m really glad she does that even though it’s really hard work. It’s, I guess, really tiring for her. But in the moments like this, I think everything is repaid."
Stuhec chased down Michelle Gisin of Switzerland who held the leader box for 16 challengers who could not better her combined time. Ultimately, Stuhec squeaked out the win by a slim 0.12-second margin.
"Amazing – I feel champagned. I invented a new word because Ilka, when she opened the bottle, it was all in my eyes so I couldn’t see and I just started to cry and run around the girls. But it’s so cool, I’m so happy, just overwhelming joy", said Gisin. "I had tough weeks in the beginning of the season, tough weeks in the States when I really didn’t ski well in Killington. I lost my confidence; I kind of lost the eyes on the prize. I just wanted to ski perfect and very secure. And then I realized I have to enjoy the freedom of skiing again, and that’s it. I think I can rely on so many great people that support me, and that’s what brought me here".
Sofia Goggia, third in the race and 0.16 seconds off the winner, has now finished on the podium in four separate disciplines this season. She busted out her dance moves in the finish area after the flower ceremony.

"I’m just happy with my skiing and with my performance today. I knew I could have something great today, but you know slalom, I get in my danger [zone] there. So I just tried to stay in the rhythm and focus", said Goggia. "It feels great. No other words needed. Great".
Goggia has been identified as an overall contender considering her performances since Killington, but she prefers to focus on individual races.
"You know my philosophy of living: I’m just focusing day by day. Tomorrow is another race, and tomorrow I’m going to do my best in downhill. But of course I’m not thinking of the overall. It’s so far away, I can’t see it".

Kjetil Jansrud’s domination in this year’s speed events continues. The Norwegian wins the Val Gardena super G with a winning time of 1:31.93 seconds. Following Jansrud in second place (+0.06 sec) was his countryman Aleksander Aamodt Kilde.Erik Guay (+0.13 sec) from Canada finished in third place.
Norway shows again is the dominant force in super-G. Last year it became the first nation to win the super-G season title 10 times. They looked to be on its way to repeating their podium sweep from last season as Aksel Lund Svindal managed to be within hundredths of Jansrud until getting twisted up and crashing through a gate at the bottom of the course.
"It’s humbling to be able to pull it off and for sure six hundredths is not much, but it’s enough", Jansrud said. "I am for sure taking risk, and I feel like I’m skiing very solid. I don’t know how long this can continue, but I’ll definitely try to keep it going as long as possible because it’s pretty fun. I think in skiing there’s always a risk versus reward and you need to take some risk, but you don’t want to take so much risk that you make big mistakes as we maybe saw with Aksel and some other guys today".
Kilde’s first World Cup podium came in Val Gardena last season when he finished third in the historic Norwegian sweep of the super-G. That result kickstarted his season, and he ultimately walked away with the World Cup super-G title and hopes that Friday’s result will do the same this year.

"I think Norway likes this slope", Kilde said. "It was really good last year with one-two-three and this year one-two. Unfortunately, we didn’t get Aksel with us this time, but he will for sure be back. It’s always fun to ski and the snow is always really, really good and today I felt pretty confident in the start. Today I showed that I can be fast, and hopefully, in the next races, I try and keep it up".
This season marks Guay’s first in some time where he is not recovering from an injury. According to the Mont Tremblant native, the extra time in the gym and on the hill this summer is already paying dividends.
"I was able to train really hard this summer and be in the gym as much as I wanted and also on snow, getting a lot more volume compared to the years before where I was coming back from injury", said Guay. "I think all that sort of plays a part in my start to the year. I feel a lot more comfortable on my skis. I’m really happy with the result, and I’m looking forward to tomorrow".

Wednesday, December 14, 2016

The Alpine Ski World Cup schedule will feature 8 races in a 4-day span. Val Gardena/Groden is preparing once again for the 49th edition of the Saslong Classic, followed by the famous GS on the Alta Badia’s Gran Risa slope. Alta Badia will also host an exciting Parallel Giant Slalom on Monday.

They will say goodbye to Italy with a slalom race in Madonna di Campiglio.

On the Ladies side, Val d’Isère will host a World Cup stage for the third straight week with three races plus a GS on Courchevel on Tuesday 20th.

Sean and Callum Pettit compete in the biggest backcountry skiing event of the season, Red Bull Cold Rush. Groovemeister puts his restaurant on four wheels and comes to the contest bearing exotic new entrees.

Tuesday, December 13, 2016

Sean and Mark McMorris ditch their snowmobiles and find some sweet backcountry lines via helicopter. Later, a disagreement on the fastest route to Kingfisher Helicopter Lodge turns into a truck race between Sean and his brother, Callum.

In 2003, 11-year-old Sean Pettit burst onto the freeskiing scene. By the age of 18 Pettit was already considered to be one of the best skiers in the world. His ability to blend huge, jaw dropping lines with innovative new school style set Sean apart as the torch bearer for the future of big mountain skiing. After a full season on the sidelines recovering from an ankle injury in Winter 2013/2014, Sean was back on track and ready to rock with what is perhaps his most prolific season ever. Not only did Sean produce the award-winning Superproof film, The Masquerade and film a part for ESPN X Games "Real Ski” competition, he is the star of the Red Bull TV's original series "Keep Your Tips Up."With appearances by Callum Pettit, Richard Permin, Mark Abma, Joe Schuster, and of course ‘Groovemeister’ (Sean’s wildly entertaining father), "Keep Your Tips Up" is a highly engaging, fun and honest depiction of Sean’s life as a skier at home and around the world. Filming for this Red Bull TV original series started in Winter 2014/2015 and took place in locations including Hokkaido, Japan; Courmayeur, Italy; Silverton, Colorado; Valdez, Alaska; Salt Lake City, Utah; and Whistler, BC. The show were aired every two weeks from October through January and were broadcasted on Red Bull TV.

Sunday, December 11, 2016

Mikaela Shiffrin continued her unbeaten streak in slalom with another demonstrative victory in Sestriere (Italy). The Olympic champion dominated both slalom runs to finish ahead of Tour veteran Veronika Velez Zuzulova (+ 1.09) and Wendy Holdener (+ 1.21).It was Shiffrin's 23rd career World Cup victory. She has now won in the last 11 slalom races she participated in. The last time she failed to win in slalom was in Flachau in January 2015 (third).After leading the first run by 0.12 seconds over Veronika Velez Zuzulova and 0.30 seconds over Frida Hansdotter, the American focused on having fun in the second run and it paid off with a 1.09 margin of victory over the Slovakian."It was not perfect, that’s for sure", Shiffrin said of her first run. "I was pretty stiff, so I was a little bit bummed with my skiing. But I have another run, so we’ll see what happens".On the second run, she held nothing back and crossed the finish line with obvious happiness, first punching both fists down and then one across her body with a smile. "I took some free runs before second run and tried to find a solid feeling that I could rely on. And then when I went out of the gate second run, I just tried to make speed on every gate and never let up, and that mentality helped me a lot", she reflected. Veronika Velez Zuzulova was pleased to finish on the podium after she lost time in the second run, but she has her eyes set on a victory this season."Second run I had a really good start, but on the lower part, I think I was too straight and there was a little bit more terrain than I was expecting, so I lost a lot of time", she noted. "I will go back to training and I will push it even harder and ... I will try to catch [Mikaela]. I can't be happy to always be second, so for sure I want more and I will push for that".

Wendy Holdener of Switzerland, who sat fifth after first run, fought hard in the second run to move onto the podium in third. Hansdotter finished the day a close fourth, just 0.08 shy of the podium."I had some troubles in the course, so I’m happy that I fought for the podium. But I could do it better", Holdener said as she continues to hunt down her first victory in slalom.

Henrik Kristoffersentakes his 10th World Cup Slalom win at Val d'Isère followed by Marcel Hirscher+0.75 and Aleksandr Khoroshilov +1.92.
After sitting out the first slalom of the season, Henrik Kristoffersen jumped from 3rd place to the highest spot on the podium, to claim on the challenging course of the “Criterium de la Première Neige” in Val d’Isère. Already last year the Norwegian was topping the field in Val d’Isère, but this years’ victory is special for Kristoffersen as he had difficult start in the season due to personal reasons.
"It's a really good feeling. With all that's happened in the last month and a half, too, this is really good. I hope you can expect me to ski good. As long as I can do that, I'm happy. I'm a little bit relieved. It's nice to slap some plastic again".
It’s the other way round for Marcel Hirscher. He has been on the podium in every tech race he participated in since the beginning of the season, and today again, he earned a second place in the slalom.
"You never can expect anything in alpine ski racing, especially not in the technical events, it is nearly impossible. From parts, it was an amazing weekend, from the positions, it was brilliant, but from the feelings I had during skiing, it was not the best weekend I've has so far in my career. Now Henrik is back and he is showing us who is the real big king in slalom skiing. I thought I have done a pretty good job during the summer, but right now I am searching for some slalom tricks to come closer to Henrik."
In third place, Alexander Khoroshilov skied a very strong first run and limited the damage in the second. The Russian athlete, who never performed better than 8th place in Val d’Isère, grabbed his 7th career podium.
"First run was really great. The second run, it was just surviving for me and maybe I think it's not only for me, but I'm really happy I'm on the podium again. I had a really good feeling and in the second run it was just a little more bumpy so I was a little more stiff. Really, I was just braking and surviving".

Saturday, December 10, 2016

An incredibly tight Giant Slalom race unfolded on the legendary Kandahar Giovanni A. Agnelli slope in Sestriere, Italy, on Saturday as mere hundredths separated the leaders after the first run, but second run proved challenging for the top two contenders.
Rising to the challenge was Worley, who admitted after the race that she watched Alexis Pinturault's win in Val d'Isere on TV before her second run and was inspired to deliver a similar performance.
"It feels really awesome", Worley said about her back-to-back GS victories. "It’s great to be able to ski just like you're used to doing in training and just have to think about pushing really hard in the races. And that was clearly the only thing that I needed to think about today because all the girls were fighting very hard. It was a tight race, so I’m happy I won it".
Worley's victory over Sofia Goggia by a 0.15-second margin, the 10th of her career in GS, now ties her with Carole Merle for the French women's GS win record.
Goggia was the clear crowd favorite, and her teammate Marta Bassino finished fifth to contribute to four Italians cracking the top 15. It marked Goggia's fourth podium finish in two weeks.

"I’m going to say the same words I already said in Killington", Goggia noted with conviction. "We are the fastest team in giant slalom on the World Cup".
Lar Gut, meanwhile, was just happy to salvage a podium finish on the day.

"The first run was a nightmare", Gut remarked. "I did not ski the way I wanted, always too early in the turn. That wasn’t really skiing. I tried to ski a little more aggressive, tighter lines, but it didn’t really work the way I was hoping. I’m happy to be on the podium. It’s always great to be on the podium, and it’s a good thing that I’m third even if I’m not skiing well".

Just like last week, the suspense around the second run of the Giant Slalom at Val d’Isère was big, with local Alexis Pinturault in the lead after first run, more than half a second ahead, and holding on in second run to claim his first GS win on "La Face". Globe winner Marcel Hirscher is the only one that came close being +0.33 off the pace. Henrik Kristoffersen grabbed his first podium spot of the podium this season.
The French winning streak in Giant Slalom went on at the Criterium de la Première Neige in Val d’Isère, with Alexis Pinturault taking the 8th win in the 9 last giant slaloms for France! The Alpine Combined globe winner and second of last year’s overall standings got injured in training on Wednesday, but it didn’t stop him from charging the course and taking the win, the 17th of his career.
"I won my first World Cup in Val d'Isere. It was in slalom and then I was always on the first place so I wanted to be on the podium today and at least I am on the top of the podium, so, perfect. It was difficult because for the warmup, I get so much problem with my hand and finally with adrenaline the pain went out".
Second place came to Marcel Hirscher. The Austrian is the only one that could challenge Pinturault in his strongest discipline, skiing stronger and stronger, to finally lay down the fastest second run. Three Giant Slalom, three podium placements for Marcel Hirscher this season. Even though he didn’t grab a win yet, there is no frustration for the discipline globe winner from last year.
"The only thing I can say is that my first run was definitely not what I was expecting. I had a really great feeling before this race and the first run was a really big 'wow' effect for myself, but the second run was way better. I tried my best and finally reached the podium for another time and I'm very happy with today's result in general but I'm a little bit pissed off about the first run."
Henrik Kristoffersen had a difficult start in the season, finishing 8th in Sölden and Val d’Isère last week, and skipping the Levi slalom race because of a conflict with his federation. Today was a step in the right direction, with an impressive second run that brought him back from 12th position to the podium.
"My first run was not good. Second run didn't feel much better but I think it was way faster, so I'm a little surprised to be sitting here, honestly. I think it feels bad for everybody on this hill. It's the toughest GS in the world so that's pretty natural, but I feel like I'm missing something a little bit. The second run was a step in the right direction, but we're not there yet but getting closer I guess".

The Swatch Freeride World Tour (FWT) is the premier big mountain freeskiing and snowboarding tour in the world, featuring the sport’s top athletes competing in the world’s best mountain resorts. Created in 2008, the FWT became even more global in 2012 following the union of North American-based Freeskiing World Tour, The North Face Masters of Snowboarding, and the European-based Swatch Freeride World Tour. Besides the successful implementation of this truly global FWT, the increase of Freeride World Qualifier (FWQ) and Junior Freeride Tour events in recent years shows that the base of the sport is growing exponentially.The FWT represents top-level big mountain riding, the most progressive and pure discipline of skiing and snowboarding. Riders use the entire mountain as their canvas, from cliffs, cornices and chutes to powder fields and trees. FWT events have invitation-only athlete rosters but the full FWQ series allows athletes to compete in 1 to 4-star level events and qualify for the FWT the following season. All FWT competition venues are handpicked for their terrain, as well as their steepness, and offer a wide range of options to those competing.

Sunday, December 4, 2016

Lara Gut won the first Super-G race of the season in Lake Louise. Tina Weirather came in second +0.10 behind and Sofia Goggia took third +0.59 seconds out.
Lara Gut was more ecstatic about her downhill podium finish the previous day than her ninth career super-G victory –and third at Lake Louise – because she felt like she finally figured out the mountain on Saturday.
"I wasn't skiing really well at the top so I understood that I should change something. And from the middle on, I just tried to keep a really straight line and be aggressive on the skis. I'm happy it paid off", she said of the super-G race. "It was always a fight here in downhill. I never found the way how to be fast. Since yesterday and the past days I had the feeling I was finally starting to build something. And that's cool because usually it's the beginning of the season it took always so much energy here. I was always fighting".
Tina Weirather of Liecthenstein secured her first podium of the season in second, just 0.10 seconds behind Gut, after putting up a fight of her own.
"Yesterday I was really angry because I skied really well but I just didn't have the result. The first few had sun and then when I skied it was bad visibility, so I was really down. I tried to take that anger into skiing today, and it worked", said Weirather. "It's an aggressive sport. I mean, you have to control it – that's for sure. I was really calm today. I was not nervous. I was super focused. And it's exciting to be back on the podium."
Speaking of the podium, the appearances just keep coming for Italian Sofia Goggia who has now finished inside the top three in three different disciplines over the past week. She was 0.59 seconds off Gut's pace in the Lake Louise super-G.
"Oh, I'm pretty speechless actually. I'm pretty happy with my results even though I made a little mistake today. I made my third podium", Goggia said. "So it's like a dream for me – in three different disciplines. It's, hey, what's this going on?".

The level of this Giant Slalom on the O.K course in Val d’Isère (replacement of Beaver Creek) was extremely high and the scenario with a fired up local French team very exciting. France placed four racers in the top five.

In the end, it’s a maiden victory for Mathieu Faivre, who climbs on the highest step of the podium between both standings leaders Marcel Hirscher (2nd +0.49) and Alexis Pinturault (3rd +1.11).

Before today, Mathieu Faivre only scored two World Cup podiums, both by the end of last season in Yuzawa Naeba in February, where he finished second, and at the Finals in St. Moritz where he grabbed a 3rd place. Constant performances throughout the winter in giant slalom last season allowed him to claim the 4th place in the standings and built up confidence. Today he is reaping the benefits of several years of hard work and celebrating his first World Cup victory.

Saturday, December 3, 2016

The conditions and circumstances were different, but Slovenian Ilka Stuhec still ruled the downhill track at Lake Louise on Saturday where she picked up her second consecutive victory in as many days. Despite utilizing a lowered start where the men's super-G traditionally begins because of fresh snow on the track and a threatening weather system forecast to move in during the race, Stuhec bested Lara Gut by 0.11 seconds and Edit Miklos by 0.42 seconds down the shortened course.
Stuhec admitted that running fourth on the course and having to watch the rest of the racers come down after her was more nerve-racking than the previous day when she claimed victory from bib 29.
"I think running early was really an advantage because right now the snowfall is getting worse and worse. But you race with the number you have and try to do your best. I had to calm myself down after yesterday and prepare myself for the race today which, apparently, I did pretty well", said Stuhec.
Gut was also excited to pick up her first downhill podium finish of the season.
"It's the first time I'm standing on the podium, so it's great. I'm happy and since this year I finally have the feeling that I know what I'm doing on this slope", said Gut. "It's a good improvement, and I'm looking forward to tomorrow for the super-G. I'm going to try to ski even faster and cleaner".
Miklos matched her career-best World Cup result, a third-place downhill finish in St. Mortiz in January 2015. During the previous evening's bib pick, Miklos was the last to draw and was automatically assigned bib 1, but it worked out in her favor.
"Also third place – I hope the next podium it will be second and then first", joked Miklos. "I think yesterday I had not so much luck like today because the weather was good for me. I think the first numbers, they had luck. In a sport like this, sometimes you have luck and sometimes the others, they have luck. ... It was my luck because they left me just this number".
The shortened course didn't bother the athlete who represents Hungary one bit.
"I think lowering the start was a good decision because of the weather. I think it's the same if it's long or short".

Kjetil Jansrud’s domination in this year’s speed events continues and claimed the top step on the podium for the second time in a row in Val d’Isère. He crossed the finish line 0.26 seconds ahead of Peter Fill and 0.33 ahead of Aksel Lund Svindal.
The new starting order procedure resulted in an interesting start list for this downhill, with Kjetil Jansrud picking an early start number and wearing bib n°3. It looks like this strategy paid off, as the winner of yesterday’s super-g also claimed the win in the downhill today, to start the speed season in the best possible way.
Italy’s Peter Fill already showed constant training results in the past days in Val d’Isère with two second place finishes and proved that he can beat the Viking’s pace in the second training run. With bib 7 for today’s race, the downhill globe winner was able to lock up a second place and his 15th World Cup podium.
Despite missing out the second half of last season because of a torn ACL and coming back to training only a few weeks ago, Aksel Lund Svindal showed incredible skills and a solid shape on today’s downhill, where he finished third. Walking away with two podium placements is unexpected and extremely motivating for the attacking Viking.

Friday, December 2, 2016

In a Race Full of Surprises Ilka Stuhec from Slovenia claim her first ever World Cup victory. Sofia Goggia crossed the finished line 0.22 seconds behind. Joining them on the podium was Swedish's Kajsa Kling, 0.31 seconds back of the winner.
All three athletes were ecstatic with their results.
"I had a feeling that I could show some more than just average results around 10th to 15th place, that I could ski good and I could ski fast and apparently, today, the fastest", Stuhec said. "I knew I could ski fast and I just needed to put it in a race and I did".
For Goggia, the result at Lake Louise was a bit of retribution against a mountain that hasn't been so kind in the past.
"This was really unexpected even if Killington was a little bit more unexpected because I feel more confident in downhill and in super-G than in giant slalom. ... I just tried to ski without any expectations", remarked Goggia. Three years ago she suffered a torn ACL in a crash at Lake Louise. "I had to face my demons on these days. ... It was a big surprise when I saw the green light. I was like, 'Oh my God' that I'm going to do that on this slope".
Kling was eyeing her career-first victory before the later runners bumped her to third, but it still marks a solid start to the season for the Swede. She has only one previous podium from the St. Moritz super-G in 2014.
"I think I was pretty stable the whole training week and it felt good during the preseason as well, so I am happy with this", said Kling. "I feel like I can do some parts better, so hopefully I can nail it tomorrow".

Following the cancellation of the races in Beaver Creek, the French resort of Val d’Isère hosted the first speed event of the season .
Kjetil Jansrud wins the Val d'Isere super G held on the "O.K." course in Val d’Isère with a winning time of 1:21.66 seconds. Following Jansrud in second place was his countrymen, Aksel Lund Svindal (+ 0.17). Italy's Dominik Paris completed the podium, 0.41 seconds off.
Historical days work pretty well for Norways Kjetil Janrud. To mention only last year’s premières, he topped the newly introduced PGS in Alta Badia and the first downhill ever in Korea on the future Olympic course. In Val d’Isère, the Super-G and Downhill globe winner of 2015 proved once again that he is a serious contender, by mastering this first speed race of the season with the fastest time.
Already last season Aksel Lund Svindal impressed with an extraordinary come-back, and he is doing it again this year. Last season ended abruptly with a torn ACL in the downhill in Kitzbuehel, after he dominated the first half of the season, but the lack of training before this season didn’t seem to stop the extraordinary Norwegian.
In third, South Tyrolean Dominik Paris laid down a strong run and could grab third place. With now 16 podiums in the speed disciplines, Paris is happy to start the season in a good way, especially since last season he reached his top shape only later in the season.

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Raul Revuelta is an internationally recognized public speaker, author, professor and tourism consultant.
"I hold a Doctorate in Geography and History from Madrid’s Complutense University together with a Master in Human Resources, specialized in Quality Management. In recent years my career and teaching and research work has centered around two areas: on the one hand, the integration of the principles of quality and sustainability in tourism, and on the other, sports and adventure tourism, with a special focus on the management of ski and mountain resorts.
I spend my spare time enjoying mountains and nature in general, but my biggest passion by far is skiing".